Quatuor Mosaiques presents depth, quietly
Some of the more reckless philosophers I’ve known claim that music is not sound. What? The idea is that sound is just the vehicle of some greater experiential entity that we call music. Such notions were put a casual test by the 27-year-old European ensemble Quatuor Mosaiques in a sold-out Philadelphia Chamber Music Society concert on Tuesday. Even in the good Perelman Theater acoustics, Mosaiques’ period instrument sound was demure compared to such vigorous groups as the Emerson Quartet. Attacks were less aggressive. Peaks were lower, valleys higher in a generally narrower sound picture. Yet less sound hardly translated into less music, suggesting that the group does tap into something well beyond mere notes and rests. No doubt this is what people mean when they talk about music casting a spell.
Some of the more reckless philosophers I've known claim that music is not sound. What? The idea is that sound is just the vehicle of some greater experiential entity that we call music.
Such notions were put a casual test by the 27-year-old European ensemble Quatuor Mosaiques in a sold-out Philadelphia Chamber Music Society concert on Tuesday. Even in the good Perelman Theater acoustics, Mosaiques' period instrument sound was demure compared to such vigorous groups as the Emerson Quartet. Attacks were less aggressive. Peaks were lower, valleys higher in a generally narrower sound picture. Yet less sound hardly translated into less music, suggesting that the group does tap into something well beyond mere notes and rests. No doubt this is what people mean when they talk about music casting a spell.
That also explains why a city like Philadelphia — not known for much of a historically informed performance community — has a strong Quatuor Mosaiques following. Pared-back vibrato, the less-imposing sound of gut strings, plus a meticulous ear for overall blend created an inviting warmth that's vaguely comparable to the Guarneri Quartet at its peak. Whether or not you noticed the period-instrument difference in the opening Haydn String Quartet Op. 20 No. 3, you felt it. Sometimes with earlier Haydn works you hear form more than expressive content. This performance drew you so far below the surface, you heard only content.
Surface charm is part of the content in Mozart's durable Quartet in B Flat K. 458 ("Hunt"), and it's here that the Mosaiques showed its unerring taste in phrasing details. Part of the Mosaiques' distinctive chemistry is the Viennese sensibility projected by first violinist Erich Hobarth, whose incidental solos have a lilting hesitation (like a singer catching a breath) that accentuate the music's contours. Cellist Christophe Coin anchors that elasticity with a solidly even approach toward tempo as well as the consistently vibrant presence of his sound. Everything was handled with such care, right down to small accompaniment figures.
Beethoven's dense, enigmatic String Quartet Op. 135 occupied the concert's second half — with a curious effect. Never a great melodist, Beethoven seemed to be daring himself to go with the barest semblance of thematic material so as not to distract one's ears from the music's structure; sensuous listening wasn't in the cards in music so uncompromising and obsessive. One can feel a bit left out of the first two movements, though not amid the sweep of the Mosaiques performance. The main reason to hear Op. 135, though, is the slow movement: The concentration and subtle sense of continuity that Mosaiques brought to the piece felt like a profound secular prayer.
Contact music critic David Patrick Stearns at dstearns@phillynews.com.